


With A Little Help From My Friends (I get by)

by maybe_we_were



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Bar, Clint Is a Good Bro, Confused Steve Rogers, Dating Tips, F/M, Gen, Male Friendship, POV Clint Barton, Smart Clint
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-16
Updated: 2015-07-16
Packaged: 2018-04-09 17:16:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,286
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4357655
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maybe_we_were/pseuds/maybe_we_were
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Clint teaches Steve about the intricacies of dating in the new era.  </p><p>AKA</p><p>Clint feels like Yoda and Steve is a confused Luke Skywalker.</p>
            </blockquote>





	With A Little Help From My Friends (I get by)

**Author's Note:**

> Hello all! Sorry I've been away so long. Here's a little fic that shows some of a Clint/Steve friendship, which I think would be great! There's a little (hinted) romance at the end for us happily ever after people. Enjoy.
> 
> Stan Lee/Marvel, you own everything.

Clint didn’t expect his Saturday night to be spent explaining how to pick up women to Cap.  And by saying “how to,” he means showing him how _other_ people do it. 

It all started with a trip to the bar.  Both men were dressed in casual clothes, enjoying some comradery (and beer) without Tony’s hyperactivity or Thor’s cluelessness.  During a small lull in their conversation, a pretty redhead came over and sidled up next to Steve at the bar. 

“Hello,” she said, eyeing up the Captain.  Her dress left little to the imagination and while Clint knew what she was trying to do, Steve clearly didn’t.  Actually, _any_ other man probably would have known what was about to happen.

“Ma’am,” Steve nodded, courteous as always.

“What’s a handsome man like you doing out alone?” the young woman practically purred. 

“I’m not alone, I’m here hanging out with my friend,” Steve responded, shifting back a little bit as she leaned forward, invading his personal space.  “Have a good evening.”

Steve’s dismissal did not go over well with the redhead, who pouted before slipping off the bar stool.  Only Clint saw her reaction, as Steve had already turned his attention back to Clint.

“Cap, what was that?” he asks, pointing over to where the woman is now standing with her friends.

“What?” Steve replies, eyes widening a fraction.

“That girl, she wanted you!”

“What?? No way!” Steve exclaims incredulously, “How could you even tell?”

Shaking his head, Clint tells him. 

“She came up and started talking to you, then asked you about being here alone, implying she’d like to change that.  And she was leaning in towards you.”

“You got all of that from a minute long conversation?” Steve questions, still not believing.

“Yes!” Clint says, his hands moving to emphasize his point, “It’s more than the conversation aspect, its body language too, which, might I remind you, I have been trained to read.”

He watches as Steve starts to tap his foot, something he does when he feels uncomfortable or nervous.  Steve looks down and mutters, which does not help in the loud bar and with Clint’s hearing aids. 

“What’d you say?”

The Captain looks back up, cheeks flushed.

“I wasn’t interested in her anyways.”

“Obviously,” he smirks, picking up his beer and taking a long sip.  “Let me help you out.  I’ll show you what it looks like when one party in interested in another.”

Clint scans the area and sees his first example within five seconds.

“Okay, see that couple over there in the corner?”

Steve, an attentive student, turns in the direction Clint motioned to.

“The girl with the long blonde hair next to the guy with the black shirt?” Steve asks for clarification. 

Clint nods.

“See how he just straightened his shirt a bit? And she just played with her hair?  They’re both trying to impress each other.  It’s called preening.  You try and make yourself look good to attract the other person.”

Steve looks back at him.

“Preening?”  One blonde eyebrow lifts up.  “Sounds like…something monkeys do.”

The sincerity used in Steve’s voice makes Clint crack up and pat him on the shoulder. 

“No wonder you don’t know when a woman is hitting on you.” 

Clint wipes underneath his eyes, clearing away stray tears that followed his laughter and searches the bar for his next teaching opportunity.  Luckily, his ability to read lips comes in handy when he sees two men and two women over at the pool table. 

“Alright Cap, next lesson.  I’ll narrate what’s being said over at that pool table,” Clint says, nodding in the general direction.  Steve’s blue eyes follow Clint’s gaze and lock in on the group of young people. 

“The guy in green just told the brunette that her eyes are pretty, so you know that he’s interested.  Now the brunette is shooting a look over at her friend, who just winked.  Pretty sure she’s interested too.” 

Clint looks back at Steve, who looks more confused that he did before. 

“I’ll make it simple.  He complimented her, she liked it.  Her friend approves.”

Steve still looks confused, tilting his head to the left a little. 

“Wouldn’t having other people around make it harder to do this kind of stuff?”

Clint taps his chin with a callous finger as he thinks about his answer.  Steve, on the other hand, takes another sip of his beer as he waits patiently.

“For some,” Clint starts, “it’s easier when they have a friend there.  It makes them feel more comfortable.  Or they employ a wingman or wingwoman, for the matter, who helps talk them up.”

Steve nods his head in understand before Clint continues. 

“For others, they’d rather go it alone, like your redheaded friend did.”

The more Clint thinks about it, he figures Steve could use an entire course on the changes in social behavior and dating, but he may not be the best suited to teach him.  It’s been so long since he’s been in the dating scene its unreal.  Then again, Clint is a much better teacher than Tony or Thor would be.  And Bruce…well, he’s not even sure if Bruce dates.  The last person that leaves besides himself is—

“I still have no clue how you know all of this,” Steve says, shaking his head and breaking Clint from his thoughts.

“Really, Cap?” Clint replies, pressing his hand over his heart.  “You don’t think I have game??”

Clint’s sarcasm almost makes Steve spit out the sip of beer he had just taken.

“No!” Steve sputters, “I mean, I know you’ve dated and you’re a nice guy and…

“Cap, relax, I’m fooling you.”

Steve’s cheeks tinge pink and a small smile graces his lips, eyes wandering to the other side of the bar. 

“Clint,” Steve says in a low voice, “what’s going on there?”

Clint looks over to find a guy teasing a woman, his hand on the small of her back.  The woman laughs and punches his arm, letting the guy drape his jacket over her shoulders before leaving together.

“Did he just?

“Yep.”

“And she just-

“Yep.”

“And they just-

“Yep.”

Clint looks back to find Steve staring wide-eyed.

“They actually use teasing to show attraction?  What happened to bringing a woman flowers or the buying her a drink?”

“Well, they still do that.  It depends on the man and the woman.  Each situation is unique.”

Now Clint’s starting to feel a bit like Yoda, minus the incorrect sentence syntax, which he won’t admit, he kind of likes.  None of the other teammates ask for his advice, since he tends to be so soft-spoken.  It feels nice to be needed. 

“Don’t worry, Steve, you’ll get the hang of it.”

 

* * *

 

A week and a half later, the whole gang decides to have a night in at the Tower.  Clint’s at the bar to grab a drink for both Sam and himself, while taking in the rest of the scene.  

Tony and Pepper are relaxing on the couch, talking with Jane and Thor, who is quite loud due to some strong Asgardean mead.  Bruce and Hill are near the piano, discussing who knows what with Rhodey. 

Clint’s eyes fall on Steve last, who is making his way over to Natasha, two drinks in hand.  He watches as Steve offers a drink to Natasha, who accepts with a brush of fingers.  Steve smiles as well, mirroring her movements.  Steve then says something that makes Natasha laugh (which she rarely does) before smoothing her hair down and placing her hand on Steve’s arm, which makes him move in closer. 

A flashback of his and Steve’s conversation at the bar runs through Clint’s mind. 

_Well, I’ll be damned._


End file.
